Sister City Transparency Act

Key Points

• This bill orders a government study of sister city agreements between American towns and foreign communities in countries with high corruption levels. The goal is to see if these partnerships are being used for spying or to unfairly influence local American politics and businesses.
• The study will look at how foreign governments choose which U.S. cities to partner with and what kind of activities they do together. It will also check if these deals help foreign nationals get special access to American schools, businesses, or government offices.
• Investigators will search for risks like economic pressure or threats to free speech that might come from these deals. They will also look into whether foreign partners are using these programs to bypass normal visa rules or steal industrial secrets.
• A final report must be given to Congress within nine months of the study starting. This report will include recommendations on how to make these partnerships more transparent and how to protect American interests from foreign interference.

Impact Analysis

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